Little Kids Rock to Honor Metallica Frontman James Hetfield with "Livin' the Dream" Award in Memory of Late Facebook Executive Chef, Josef Desimone

Jeff Campitelli, Marcus Henderson, Moonalice and Coverflow to perform at annual fundraiser that revitalizes music education in San Francisco Bay Area public schools.

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) November 07, 2013

Little Kids Rock, the nation’s leading nonprofit provider of music instruction and instruments to public schools, will honor Metallica frontman James Hetfield at the charity’s annual "Rockin’ The Bay Benefit" on Saturday, Nov. 9 at Facebook’s Menlo Park headquarters. Hetfield is being recognized for his ongoing support for and contributions to the organization and will receive the inaugural "Livin’ The Dream Award," which was created in honor of Josef Desimone, the late executive chef of Facebook who spearheaded this benefit for Little Kids Rock and who was a huge fan of Metallica.

"We’re presenting James with this special award as a way to not only recognize his support of Little Kids Rock over the years, but also his role as an inspirational presence in a band that has revolutionized and defined a music genre," said David Wish, Little Kids Rock founder and executive director. "Josef was a passionate philanthropist who touched our lives with his generosity and we know he would’ve been proud to see James honored at the event held in his memory."

The benefit will assemble a star-studded lineup of musical luminaries to help raise awareness and funds for its mission of revitalizing music programs in school districts whose music programming has been impacted by budget cuts. This year, Jeff Campitelli, most famously known as the drummer on Joe Satriani’s various albums and Marcus Henderson, critically acclaimed heavy metal guitarist known for his role as the lead guitarist for the Guitar Hero series, will join Little Kids Rock in celebrating James Hetfield and eleven years of service to schoolchildren in the Bay Area.

"I’m a firm believer in creative expression through music. It is important to have it available from a young age, which is why I support Little Kids Rock’s mission to make music education accessible to children," says Hetfield. "I’ve seen how music changes people’s lives for the better and I am honored to have a part in helping the organization enrich young lives through the lifelong gift of music education."

Founded in a single classroom in East Palo Alto in 2002, Little Kids Rock currently funds modern music programming for more than 112,000 public school children in 12 states, including over 3,500 in the Bay Area. The "Rockin’ The Bay Benefit" is held annually in the Bay Area to support schools in the region in which Little Kids Rock was founded.

Little Kids Rock is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization that transforms children’s lives by restoring and revitalizing music education in public schools. Little Kids Rock was founded in San Francisco in 2002 by David Wish, an elementary school teacher who had grown frustrated with the lack of music education funding at his school. Today, Little Kids Rock is the leading nonprofit provider of free lessons and instruments to underprivileged children in US public schools, and has served nearly 250,000 students at over 1,700 schools in 25 cities nationwide. Little Kids Rock Honorary Board Members include Steven Van Zandt, Bonnie Raitt, Slash, Paul Simon, B.B. King, Ziggy Marley and other famous friends in the music industry. More info at: http://www.littlekidsrock.org.